Upright type vacuum cleaner

ABSTRACT

An upright vacuum cleaner comprises a cleaner body, plural locking recesses in the cleaner body include a parallel position recess in which the locking protrusion is locked when the cleaner body rotates to a parallel position with respect to a surface to be cleaned. Additionally, a filter removal means, prevents a filter cover from being removed when the vacuum cleaner is being operated.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to a vacuum cleaner, and moreparticularly to an upright type vacuum cleaner comprising a cleaner bodyand a suction port assembly that are connected to each other and canrotate freely with respect to each other.

2. Description of the Related Art

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a general upright type vacuum cleaner 100comprises a cleaner body 110 and a suction port assembly 130. Thesuction port assembly 130 has a dust suction hole (not shown) formed inthe underside thereof, which is connected with the cleaner body 110through an air passage, part of which includes connection pipe 138. Thecleaner body 110 comprises a rotation shaft portion 115 protruding fromtwo lower opposing sides of the cleaner body 110 and the suction portassembly 130 comprises two oppositely disposed rotation shaft holes 136,each of which is completely formed with a mounting cover 135 beingmounted over the rotation shaft hole 136 to form a retainer for one eachof the two ends of he rotation shaft portion 115. The cleaner body 110and the suction port assembly 130 are connected to each other as therotation shaft portion 115 is inserted into the rotation shaft hole 136,allowing the cleaner body 110 and the suction port assembly 130 torotate freely with respect to each other. According to the upright typevacuum cleaner 100, a user can perform cleaning operations by varyingthe angle between the surface to be cleaned and the cleaner body 110depending on the different cleaning surfaces.

The cleaner body 110 has one or more locking recesses 140 formed in aside thereof. The suction port assembly 130 is provided with a mountingportion 137 and a resilient pedal 150 that is pivotably mounted on themounting portion 137. The resilient pedal 150 has a locking protrusion154 protruding from a side thereof. The locking protrusion 154 issequentially locked in the one or more locking recess 140 when thecleaner body 110 rotates relative to the suction port assembly 130.

The resilient pedal 150 also has a resilient support portion 155 in theshape of a plate that is formed integrally with a lower end of theresilient pedal 150. The resilient pedal 150 is mounted on the mountingportion 137 such that an end of the resilient support portion 155 issupported on an inner wall 137 a of the mounting portion 137.Accordingly, the locking protrusion 154 resiliently presses a sidesurface of the cleaner body 110 and then is sequentially locked in theone or more locking recesses 140 when the cleaner body 110 rotates. Inorder for the cleaner body 110 to be released from the locking state inwhich the locking protrusion 154 is locked in the one or more lockingrecesses 140 and to once again be free to rotate, a resilient pedalportion 153 is pressed to pivot the resilient pedal 150, releasing thelocking protrusion 154 from the one or more locking recesses 140.

The one or more locking recesses 140 preferably include an uprightposition recess 141 and an inclined position recess 142, which areformed along a portion to which the locking protrusion 154 contacts whenthe cleaner body 110 rotates. When the cleaner body 110 is in an uprightposition, the locking protrusion 154 is locked in the upright positionrecess 141. Accordingly, the cleaner body 110 does not rotate but isheld in the upright portion when the upright type vacuum cleaner 100 isnot in use. When the upright type vacuum cleaner 100 is in use, with thecleaner body 110 being rotated at a predetermined angle with respect toa surface to be cleaned, the locking protrusion 154 is locked in one ofthe inclined position recesses 142. Accordingly, when the vacuum cleaner100 is lifted up over an obstacle such as a threshold during cleaning,the suction port assembly 130 rotates no more than the predeterminedangle with respect to the cleaner body 110.

When in use, the cleaner body 110 of the upright type vacuum cleaner 100can lie parallel or nearly parallel to the surface to be cleaned, asshown in FIG. 3. When used in this position, the locking protrusion 154is pressed to the side surface of the cleaner body 110 such that theresilient support portion 155 remains subject to an external force thattends to deform the resilient support portion 155 (FIGS. 1 and 2). Ifthe upright type vacuum clear 100 is used in this way for a long time,the resilient support portion 155 can become deformed. When theresilient support portion 155 deforms, it provides a reduced engagementforce to the locking protrusion 154.

In addition, as described above, when the cleaner body 110 is used lyingin parallel to the surface to be cleaned, the locking protrusion 154presses against the side surface of the cleaner body 110. When thecleaner body 110 rotates about the rotation shaft portion 115, there isa contact resistance or friction generated where the surfaces of thelocking protrusion 154 and the side surface of the cleaner body 110 makecontact with each other. Because of this resistance, the cleaner bodydoes not rotate smoothly.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been developed to solve the above-describedproblems. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention toprovide an upright type vacuum cleaner improved in construction so thatit becomes capable of preventing deformation of a resilient pedal andreducing any rotation resist of the cleaner body.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an upright-typevacuum cleaner capable of improving the convenience of a user byproviding a filter cover which is not easily opened by the dischargingpressure of the air, while the filter cover is easily opened and closedby the user.

According to the present invention in order to achieve the aboveobjects, an upright type vacuum cleaner comprises a suction portassembly, a cleaner body connected to the suction port assembly, thecleaner body and the suction port assembly being freely pivotable withrespect to each other, the cleaner body comprising a frame having a ductformed at a side of the cleaner body in order to communicate with themotor driving chamber, a support member protruded to a predetermineddimension from an inside wall of the duct, a filter cover disposed inthe duct, and a removal means provided at a side of the cleaner body toopen and close the filter cover, at least one locking recess formed in aside of the cleaner body, and a resilient pedal pivotably mounted on thesuction port assembly and having a locking protrusion which issequentially locked in the at least one locking recess when the cleanerbody pivots with respect to the suction port assembly such that thecleaner body pivots in a stepwise manner. The at least one lockingrecess includes a parallel position recess in which the lockingprotrusion of the resilient pedal is locked when the cleaner body pivotsto a parallel position with respect to a surface to be cleaned, anupright position recess in which the locking protrusion is locked whenthe cleaner body is in an upright position with respect to the surfaceto be cleaned, and one or more inclined position recesses in which thelocking protrusion is locked when the cleaner body pivots at apredetermined angle with respect to the surface to be cleaned. Theremoval means includes at least one hook formed at a front end of thefilter cover, and a locking hole having a locking protrusion disposed atthe frame placed at a position corresponding to the position of thehook. The hook includes a fixing portion extended from the filter cover,a flexible pressing portion bent in a direction approximately 180° fromthe fixing portion, and a pair of protrusions disposed at both sides ofthe flexible pressing portion for engagement with the locking protrusionof the locking hole.

The resilient pedal may further include a pedal body pivotably mountedon the suction port assembly, the pedal body comprising the lockingprotrusion protruding from a side toward the cleaner body and a pedalportion being subject to an external force to release the lockingprotrusion from the at least one locking recess, and a resilient supportportion for resiliently pressing a side of the pedal body to pivot thepedal body in a direction where the locking protrusion presses thecleaner body.

The resilient support portion may further includes a plate elementintegrally protruding from a lower side of the pedal body, the plateelement having a bending portion to be supported by an inner wall of thesuction port assembly.

The at least one locking recess may have a slanted surface such that thelocking protrusion is easily released from the at least one lockingrecess when the cleaner body pivots into the upright position.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above objects and characteristic of the present invention will bemore apparent by describing a preferred embodiment of the presentinvention in greater detail with reference to the accompanying drawings,in which:

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a conventional uprighttype vacuum cleaner;

FIG. 2 is an elevational rear view showing a detail of the upright typevacuum cleaner of FIG. 1 in an assembled state;

FIG. 3 is an elevational side view showing the upright type vacuumcleaner of FIG. 1 in use;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing an upright type vacuumcleaner according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a main part of the upright typevacuum cleaner of FIG. 4 showing the operation of the upright typevacuum cleaner according to a preferred embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of an upright vacuum cleaner according to apreferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged detail view showing an important part of FIG. 6 ingreater detail; and

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken approximately along a line VI-VI ofFIG. 6.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will bedescribed in greater detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.With respect to those components having constructions and functionssimilar to those of the conventional upright type vacuum cleanerdescribed with reference to FIGS. 1 through 3, identical referencenumerals are assigned. Therefore, a detailed description of likenumbered parts will be omitted.

Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 5, an upright type vacuum cleaner 200according to the present invention includes a cleaner body 110 and asuction port assembly 130 rotatably connected to the cleaner body 110. Adriving shaft 116 rotates in association with the rotation of a suctionmotor (not shown) which is built within the cleaner body 110, and thereference numeral 138 refers to a connection pipe for connecting a dirtsuction hole (not shown) to the cleaner body 1 10 to allow air to flowtherethrough.

The cleaner body 110 has a plurality of locking recesses 240 formed inproximity to the suction port assembly 130. A resilient pedal 150,having a locking protrusion 154, is pivotably mounted on the suctionport assembly 130. Accordingly, when the cleaner body 110 rotates withrespect to the suction port assembly 130, the locking protrusion 154 isresiliently locked in one of the locking recesses 240, therebysequentially restricting the cleaner body 110 from rotating.

The resilient pedal 150 includes a pedal body 151 and a resilientsupport portion 155. The pedal body 151 includes the locking protrusion154 protruding from a side thereof, a rotation shaft 152 formed througha center thereof, and a pedal portion 153 formed on an upper portionthereof. The pedal body 151 is pivotably mounted on the suction portassembly 130 in such a manner that the rotation shaft 151 is rotatablyconnected to a mounting portion 137 of the suction port assembly 130. Atthis point, the pedal portion 153 is exposed in an upward direction fromthe suction port assembly 130. Accordingly, a user presses a top of thepedal portion 153 to pivot the pedal body 150 during use of the uprighttype vacuum cleaner 200.

The resilient support portion 155 resiliently urges the pedal body 151to pivot the pedal body 151 in a predetermined direction. In thisembodiment, the resilient pedal 150 is provided with a resilient supportportion comprising a plate member 155, which protrudes from a lower endof the pedal body 151. The plate member 155 is integrally formed withthe pedal body 151 and has a bending portion formed at a center thereof.

As described above with reference to FIG. 2, the pedal body 151 ismounted on the mounting portion 137 such that an end of the plate member155 is supported on an inner wall 137 a (FIG. 2) of the mounting portion137. When the pedal portion 153 is subject to an external force, thepedal body 151 pivots and thus the plate member 155 is deformed. As aresult of its resilient characteristics, the plate member 155 is subjectto a recovering force. Being released from the external force, the platemember 155 has a tendency to recover its original shape due to therecovering force, and accordingly, the pedal body 151 is automaticallyreturned to its initial position. The initial position of the pedal body151 is a position where the locking protrusion 154 resiliently presses aside of the cleaner body 110.

Meanwhile, the resilient pedal 150 is not limited to the describedpreferred embodiment. That is, various changes and modifications can bemade if the resilient pedal 150 includes the pedal body 151 pivotablymounted on the suction port assembly 130 to pivot by a pressure of auser, and the resilient support portion 155 for resiliently pressing thepedal body 151.

A lower side of the cleaner body 110, which contacts with the lockingprotrusion 154 of the resilient pedal 150 when the cleaner body 110rotates, has a partially concave configuration to form the plurality ofthe locking recesses 240. The locking recesses 240 include an uprightposition recess 241, an inclined position recess 242, and a parallelposition recess 243, as shown in FIG. 4.

The upright position recess 241, on which the locking protrusion 154 islocked, allows the cleaner body 110 to maintain its upright positionwith respect to a surface to be cleaned. Accordingly, when the uprighttype vacuum cleaner 200 is not in use, generally with the cleaner body110 being in the upright position with respect to the surface to becleaned, the locking protrusion 154 is locked in the upright positionrecess 241 such that the cleaner body 110 is prevented from rotatingregardless of an external force or of its own weight.

The inclined position recess 242 restricts the cleaner body 110 fromrotating beyond a predetermined angle between the cleaner body 110 andthe suction port assembly 130. That is, when the cleaner body 110rotates at the predetermined angle with respect to the suction portassembly 130, the locking protrusion 154 is locked in the inclinedposition recess 242, thereby preventing the cleaner body 110 fromfurther rotating beyond the predetermined angle. Accordingly, when thereis a small obstacle such as a threshold ahead, the upright type vacuumcleaner 200 is easily lifted to avoid the obstacle during cleaning. Theplural inclined position recesses 242 can be provided, if necessary.

The parallel position recess 243, on which the locking protrusion 154may be locked, allows the cleaner body 110 to maintain its parallelposition with respect to the surface to be cleaned. When the cleanerbody 110 lies in a position parallel to the surface to be cleaned, theplate member 155 is in relaxed state. Accordingly, even when the uprighttype vacuum cleaner 200 is used with the cleaner body 110 lying in aposition parallel to the surface to be cleaned for a long time,permanent damage to plate member 155 is prevented.

The parallel position recess 243 has a slanted surface 243 a formed on aside thereof, which facilitates the release of the locking protrusion154 from the parallel position recess 243 thereby allowing the cleanerbody 110 to be returned to a working position. When the cleaner body 110is in an upright position, and when the locking protrusion 154 isengaged in the parallel position recess 243, the locking protrusion 154can be easily released from the parallel position recess 243 with littleor no force required on the pedal portion 153 because the slantedsurface 243 a allows the locking protrusion 154 to slide out of theparallel position recess. Accordingly, as the locking protrusion 154presses against the side surface of the cleaner body 110 it can be movedalong the slanted surface 243 a of the parallel position maintainingrecess 243. Moreover, since the plate element 155 is in a more relaxedstate when the locking protrusion 154 is in the parallel position recess243, the load on the plate member 155 is decreased to some extent.Therefore, there is an effect of decreasing the resistance or frictiongenerated when the locking protrusion 154 resiliently presses the sidesurface of the cleaner body 110. In a preferred embodiment, the inclinedposition recess 242 also has a slanted surface 242 a to decrease theoperation resist, which is generated when cleaner body 110 rotates.

According to the upright type vacuum cleaner 200 described above, thelocking protrusion 154 can be sequentially locked into one of thelocking recesses 241, 242 or 243 in a stepwise manner, as the cleanerbody 110 rotates such that when the locking protrusion 154 engages oneof the recesses the cleaner body 110 is prevented from rotating furthertoward the cleaning surface. For a further rotation of the cleaner body110 toward the cleaning surface, the locking protrusion 154 has to bereleased from the locking recesses it is engaged with. In order for thelocking protrusion 154 to be released from the locking recesses 241,242, 243, a user presses the pedal portion 153 to cause the pedalportion 153 to pivot the resilient pedal 150. After the lockingprotrusion 154 is moved away from a locking recess 241, 242 or 243 thecleaner body 110 can rotate on the rotation shaft portion. When pressureon the pedal portion 153 is released, resilient force provided by theresilient support portion 155 causes the resilient pedal 150 toautomatically pivot back against the side of the cleaner body and whichcauses the locking protrusion 154 to contact with the cleaner body 110.The locking protrusion 154 can then re-engage a locking recess.

As shown in FIGS. 6 through 8, the upright-type vacuum cleaner furthercomprises a frame 262 having a duct 261 formed at a side of the cleanerbody 110 in a lengthwise direction in order to communicate with themotor driving chamber 112, a support member 263 protruding to apredetermined dimension from an inside wall of the duct 261, and afilter 264 for insertion into the duct 261. A filter cover 265 having agrill portion 265 a is disposed adjacent to the frame 262 for rotationto allow the frame 262 to be opened and closed, and a removal removalmeans 270 for opening and closing the filter cover 265.

The removal means 270 includes a hook 280 integrally formed at a frontend of the filter cover 265, and a locking hole 290 having a lockingprotrusion 290 a disposed at the frame 262 placed at a positiongenerally corresponding to the position of the hook 280.

The hook 280 comprises a fixing portion 281 extended in an innerdirection from the filter cover 265, a flexible pressing portion 282bent in a direction approximately 180° from the fixing portion 281 andextended outwardly from the filter cover 265, and a pair of protrusions283 disposed at both sides of the flexible pressing portion 282 forproviding a connection to the locking protrusion 290 a of the lockinghole 290.

The flexible pressing portion 282 is flexibly biased in a direction ofopening of a free end in regard to the fixing portion 281. Thus, thefilter cover 265 will be inhibited from opening by the dischargingpressure of the air while a user is using the vacuum cleaner, since theprotrusion 283 of the hook 280 and the locking protrusion 290 a of thelocking hole 290 are firmly engaged, when the discharging pressure ofthe air affects the filter cover 265 in the closing state of the filtercover 265. In other words, the filter cover 265 is firmly held in theclosed position when the hook 280 is inserted into the locking hole 290of the frame 262, and the protrusion 283 of the hook 280 is locked withthe locking protrusion 290 a of the locking hole 290.

To open the filter cover 265, the user slightly presses the flexiblepressing portion 282 of the hook 280, and the protrusion 53 of the hook280 is released from engagement with the locking protrusion 290 a of thelocking hole 290. Thus, the filter cover 265 is easily opened.

On the other hand, a cut away portion 284 can be formed in a bentportion of the fixing portion 281 of the hook 280 and the flexiblepressing portion 282 in order to increase the elasticity of the flexiblepressing portion 282 with respect to the fixing portion 281. Moreover,the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described andillustrated having two hooks 280 and 280′ and two locking holes 290 and290′, but one hook and one locking hole can also be used.

In the upright-type vacuum cleaner according to the preferred embodimentof the present invention having the above elements, the air dischargedto the motor driving chamber 112 is blown into the duct 261, and the airis again discharged to the outside through the filter 264 and the grillportion 265 a of the filter cover 265. At this time, the dust and dirtincluded in the air is filtered at the filter 264. When the filter cover265 is opened from the frame 262 for cleaning or changing of the filter264 after the vacuum cleaner is used a long time, the user just pressesthe flexible pressing portion 282 of the hook 280 disposed at the filtercover 265. The protrusion 283 disposed at the flexible pressing portion282 is flexibly engaged with the locking protrusions 290 a of thelocking hole 290 disposed at the frame 262 when the filter cover 265 isclosed, thus the filter cover 265 is not easily opened since the filtercover 265 is not affected by the discharging pressure of the air. Whenthe flexible pressing portion 282 is pressed in the closed state of thefilter cover 265, the filter cover 265 can be easily opened as theprotrusion 283 of the hook 280 is released from the flexible engagementwith the locking protrusion 290 a of the locking hole 290. In otherwords, great force is not required to pull the filter cover 265, inorder to open the filter cover 265, unlike with the conventional uprightvacuum cleaner.

As described so far, when the user pushes the filter cover 265 to closethe filter cover 265 after cleaning and changing the filter 264 in theopened state of the filter cover 265, the closed state of the filtercover 265 is maintained, since the hook 280 of the filter cover 265 isinserted into the locking hole 290 of the frame 262, and the protrusion283 of the hook 280 is flexibly locked with the locking protrusion 290 aof the locking hole 290.

According to the present invention as described above, the resilientsupport portion 155 is in relaxed state even when the cleaner body 110is in a parallel position with respect to the surface to be cleaned,since the locking protrusion 154 is locked in the parallel positionrecess 243 which is formed on the side surface of the cleaner body 110.

Accordingly, the resilient support portion 155 is in relaxed state evenwhen the cleaner body 110 is in parallel to the surface to be cleanedfor a long time, and as a result, the resilient support portion 155 isprevented from being deformed permanently.

Also, when the cleaner body 110 rotates and the locking protrusion 154moves in proximity to the parallel position recess 243, the resilientsupport portion 155 is subject to a lesser load due to the presence ofthe slanted surface 243 a formed on the parallel position recess 243.Therefore, there is an effect of decreasing the operation resist of therotating operation of the cleaner body 110.

According to the above-described present invention, the closed state ofthe filter cover is maintained since the protrusion of the flexiblepressing portion disposed at the hook of the filter cover is flexiblyconnected to and in engagement with the locking protrusion of thelocking hole disposed at the frame, thus the filter cover is not easilyopened by the discharging pressure of the air. In addition, the openingand the closing of the filter cover is easily operated, as the filtercover is opened by releasing the locking state of the protrusion of theflexible pressing portion and the locking protrusion of the lockinghole, with the simple method of pressing the flexible pressing portionof the hook. In other words, according to the present invention, theopening and the closing of the filter cover is very easy, while thefilter cover cannot be unintentionally opened by the force of thedischarged air while the user is using the vacuum cleaner. Therefore,the convenience of the vacuum cleaner will be improved.

Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have beendescribed, it is understood that the present invention should not belimited to these preferred embodiments but various changes andmodifications can be made by one skilled in the art within the spiritand scope of the present invention as hereinafter claimed.

1. An upright type vacuum cleaner, comprising: a suction port assembly;a cleaner body connected to the suction port assembly, the cleaner bodyand the suction port assembly being freely pivotable with respect toeach other, the cleaner body comprising, a frame having a duct formed ata side of the cleaner body in order to communicate with the motordriving chamber, a support member protruded to a predetermined dimensionfrom an inside wall of the duct, a filter cover disposed in the duct,and a removal means provided at a side of the cleaner body to open andclose the filter cover; at least one locking recess formed in a side ofthe cleaner body; and a resilient pedal pivotably mounted on the suctionport assembly and having a locking protrusion which is sequentiallylocked in the at least one locking recess when the cleaner body pivotswith respect to the suction port assembly such that the cleaner bodypivots in a stepwise manner, wherein the at least one locking recessincludes a parallel position recess in which the locking protrusion ofthe resilient pedal is locked when the cleaner body pivots to a parallelposition with respect to a surface to be cleaned, an upright positionrecess in which the locking protrusion is locked when the cleaner bodyis in an upright position with respect to the surface to be cleaned; andone or more inclined position recesses in which the locking protrusionis locked when the cleaner body pivots at a predetermined angle withrespect to the surface to be cleaned, and wherein the removal meansincludes at least one hook formed at a front end of the filter cover;and a locking hole having a locking protrusion disposed at the frameplaced at a position corresponding to the position of the hook, andwherein the hook includes: a fixing portion extended from the filtercover; a flexible pressing portion bent in a direction approximately180° from the fixing portion; and a pair of protrusions disposed at bothsides of the flexible pressing portion for engagement with the lockingprotrusion of the locking hole.
 2. The upright type vacuum cleaner ofclaim 1 wherein the resilient pedal further comprises: a pedal bodypivotably mounted on the suction port assembly, the pedal bodycomprising the locking protrusion protruding from a side toward thecleaner body and a pedal portion being subject to an external force torelease the locking protrusion from the at least one locking recess; anda resilient support portion for resiliently pressing a side of the pedalbody to pivot the pedal body in a direction where the locking protrusionpresses the cleaner body.
 3. The upright type vacuum cleaner of claim 2,wherein the resilient support portion further comprises a plate elementintegrally protruding from a lower side of the pedal body, the plateelement having a bending portion to be supported by an inner wall of thesuction port assembly.
 4. The upright type vacuum cleaner of claim 3,wherein the at least one locking recess has a slanted surface such thatthe locking protrusion is easily released from the at least one lockingrecess when the cleaner body pivots into the upright position.